The invention generally relates to nuclear thermal rocket engines. More particularly, the invention relates to a nuclear rocket and engine nozzle assembly therefor.
Nuclear rockets generally use a solid-fuel element reactor to heat a single liquid propellant. Some of the propellant is first used to cool chamber walls and reflectors before injection into the reactor heating chamber. Gamma shields are generally provided to protect crew members from reactor fluence. Gamma shields generally add to the weight of the engine, which is clearly undesirable during launch. Attempts to integrate gamma shield mass into the engine components have been limited in scope or have resulted in cooling configurations that consume valuable fuel rod space, resulting in lower power capabilities.